by Ad Frank
If "Pop" can be defined as the state where the personality of the artist upstages the art itself, then Mikey Dee was Pop personified.
His articles in The Noise and his radio show on WMFO were as much about him as the band being reviewed or played. Bad form? Maybe for some journalists, but Mikey's sincerity and enthusiasm turned it into an asset. His listeners and readers knew exactly what kind of weight to give to his opinions because they knew the man behind them. The music directors he dealt with as Director of Triple A Radio Promotions for the Planetary Group felt the same way.
Even as a musician, Mikey's personality always triumphed over form. Mikey was easily the worst drummer the Boston music scene has ever known, but more often than not, the joy that radiated from the drum riser dwarfed every dropped beat. He usually did not have any trouble finding a band to play in.
Hosting the 1993 Noise Awards, drummer Dennis McCarthy joked, "I went to high school with Mikey Dee. That was over ten years ago and I'm still living off the interest from his milk money." Dennis may be regretting this comment now, but I hope not. It was such high school traumas that fed Mikey's vision for the ideal local music scene - a scene where the bullied, taunted and ignored could not only be accepted, but could blossom, developing the charisma that only their fellow chess or drama club members knew existed. You did not have to be a nerd to join Mikey's club, so long as you were not a bully.
This is not to say that Mikey was above giving an unfavorable, or even a mean review; only that the band with all the corporate blessings was more likely to face harsh scrutiny than the three kids scrounging together a demo from their Copy Cop earnings. Mikey had his "stars" and "hits," but their designation as such had no correlation with commercial success.
Small wonder then that his memorial reception last Monday at the Paradise featured performers with gold records and those with no record at all. In the crowd were has-beens, up-and-comings, also-rans and stars. All were welcome in and welcomed into Mikey's world.
Mikey died of complications of pneumonia on July 6th, 2003, but I am ever hopeful that this is still Mikey's world. Each time I see a nerd strap on a guitar or a wallflower pick up a set of drumsticks, I will know that it is.
This article ran in the Weekly Dig